In last week's Monday Musings post I quoted from some explorers' journals. There's something wonderful about reading early impressions of a place - which in the case of Australia means the impressions of Anglo-European explorers, by sea in the late 17th and 18th centuries, and by sea and land in the nineteenth centuries. The impressions … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Explorers’ journals
Australian literature
Kavita Nandan, Home after dark (Review)
When Kavita Nandan offered me her novel to review I was happy to accept because its setting - Fiji, Australia and India - intrigued me. I've read several novels set in India, and by Indian writers, but none set in Fiji or by Fijiindian writers. Moreover, as Nandan wrote in her email, and as the … Continue reading Kavita Nandan, Home after dark (Review)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Let’s get physical – The Red Centre
A couple of years ago I wrote three Let's get physical posts in which I focused on physical descriptions of places in Australia. Since, I am currently in Central Australia (for my third time), I thought it would be good to write another post or two in this series. Central Australia - or the Alice Springs Region, … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Let’s get physical – The Red Centre
Monday musings on Australian literature: Guest post by Annette Marfording of the Bellingen Writers Festival
Having been intrigued by comments made by Annette Marfording, Program Director of the Bellingen Readers and Writers Festival, about running a literary festival, I approached her about writing a guest post for my blog. I thought her experience might intrigue at least some of my readers here too. Marfording chairs one-on-one conversations and panels at the Festival, … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Guest post by Annette Marfording of the Bellingen Writers Festival
Monday musings on Australian literature: David Unaipon Award
I've mentioned the David Unaipon Award several times in passing but have never devoted a post specifically to it. Today seemed to be a good time to do it, as it would mean I've bookended this year's NAIDOC week with Monday Musings posts devoted to indigenous literature. Just to recap, David Unaipon is credited as the … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: David Unaipon Award
Monday musings on Australian literature: NAIDOC Week 2015
Australians will be aware that this week, July 5 to 12, is NAIDOC Week. NAIDOC originally stood for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee, the committee that was once responsible for organising national activities during NAIDOC Week. However, this acronym has now become the name of the week, which suggests just how significant, and well-accepted, this … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: NAIDOC Week 2015
Emma Ashmere, The floating garden (Review)
I had a little chuckle when, fairly early in Emma Ashmere's novel, The floating garden, we discover that our main character, Ellis Gilbey, writes a gardening column under the name Scribbly Gum! Good name, I thought. If it hadn't been for my school song inspiration, this would have been the name for me! There's another … Continue reading Emma Ashmere, The floating garden (Review)
Monday musings on Australian literature: Black Inc’s Best 100 Poems
I've been feeling rather guilty about a book sent to me in late 2013 by Black Inc. I'm usually very conscientious about reading and reviewing books that I've accepted for review - not so much for those sent to me "on spec" - but I slipped up with Black Inc's The best 100 poems of Dorothy Porter. … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: Black Inc’s Best 100 Poems
Delicious descriptions: Kate Llewellyn on Aussie authors
Since I couldn't cover everything in my review of Kate Llewellyn's letters, First things first, edited by Ruth Bacchus and Barbara Hill, I decided that a follow-up Delicious Descriptions on a specific aspect of the book, her discussion of her reading, would be in order. I'm making the assumption that, like me, you're interested in what writers think about the work … Continue reading Delicious descriptions: Kate Llewellyn on Aussie authors
Monday musings on Australian literature: The Conversation’s Writing History
This is the post I planned for last week, when Jessica White hijacked me. Like that post, this one too was inspired by another person, this time my historian brother who sent me a link to an article in a new series by The Conversation called Writing History. This series aims to "examine the links, problems and dynamics of writing, recording … Continue reading Monday musings on Australian literature: The Conversation’s Writing History
